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Haptic Experiences Shift Students' Representational Gestures and Knowledge Resources

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Title: Haptic Experiences Shift Students' Representational Gestures and Knowledge Resources
Language: English
Authors: Xiaoyu Tang (ORCID 0009-0005-6556-0898), Matthew Lira (ORCID 0000-0003-4410-0575), Robb Lindgren (ORCID 0000-0002-5366-3196)
Source: Journal of Research in Science Teaching. 2026 63(2):138-160.
Availability: Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 23
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Descriptors: Science Education, Undergraduate Students, Cytology, Nonverbal Communication, Tactual Perception, Sensory Experience, Learning Modalities, Manipulative Materials
DOI: 10.1002/tea.70033
ISSN: 0022-4308
1098-2736
Abstract: The present investigation adopts an embodied cognition perspective to characterize students' learning interactions between gesture and haptic experience. Haptic technologies have emerged as a promising approach to science learning because they can simulate physical forces that students would otherwise not experience. Student-generated gestures complement haptic technology by offering insight into students' embodied understandings of physical forces. In this study, we examined the role of tangible haptic molecular models by analyzing students' spontaneous gestures and speech after their learning experiences with these models. We designed three learning conditions--Individual Haptic Model, Aggregate Haptic Models, and Equation-Based Instruction--to prepare undergraduate students for learning from an agent-based computer simulation of dynamic equilibrium. Guided by Knowledge in Pieces (KiP) theory, we employed a think-aloud protocol to investigate how haptic and computational environments cue students' knowledge resources and spontaneous gestures. Our analysis of students' speech and gesture revealed that the haptic experiences--particularly individual-level haptic--augmented the computational environment by fostering shifts in students' reasoning (1) from the phenomenological primitive "equilibrium" to "balance" and (2) from representing "aggregate" patterns to "individual" interactions. We discuss the implications of using gesture as a window into students' developing reasoning, as well as the role of haptic technology in designing embodied learning environments.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1495045
Database: ERIC
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  Data: Haptic Experiences Shift Students' Representational Gestures and Knowledge Resources
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Xiaoyu+Tang%22">Xiaoyu Tang</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0009-0005-6556-0898">0009-0005-6556-0898</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Matthew+Lira%22">Matthew Lira</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4410-0575">0000-0003-4410-0575</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Robb+Lindgren%22">Robb Lindgren</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5366-3196">0000-0002-5366-3196</externalLink>)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Journal+of+Research+in+Science+Teaching%22"><i>Journal of Research in Science Teaching</i></searchLink>. 2026 63(2):138-160.
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  Data: Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
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  Data: The present investigation adopts an embodied cognition perspective to characterize students' learning interactions between gesture and haptic experience. Haptic technologies have emerged as a promising approach to science learning because they can simulate physical forces that students would otherwise not experience. Student-generated gestures complement haptic technology by offering insight into students' embodied understandings of physical forces. In this study, we examined the role of tangible haptic molecular models by analyzing students' spontaneous gestures and speech after their learning experiences with these models. We designed three learning conditions--Individual Haptic Model, Aggregate Haptic Models, and Equation-Based Instruction--to prepare undergraduate students for learning from an agent-based computer simulation of dynamic equilibrium. Guided by Knowledge in Pieces (KiP) theory, we employed a think-aloud protocol to investigate how haptic and computational environments cue students' knowledge resources and spontaneous gestures. Our analysis of students' speech and gesture revealed that the haptic experiences--particularly individual-level haptic--augmented the computational environment by fostering shifts in students' reasoning (1) from the phenomenological primitive "equilibrium" to "balance" and (2) from representing "aggregate" patterns to "individual" interactions. We discuss the implications of using gesture as a window into students' developing reasoning, as well as the role of haptic technology in designing embodied learning environments.
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      – SubjectFull: Cytology
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      – SubjectFull: Tactual Perception
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      – SubjectFull: Manipulative Materials
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      – TitleFull: Haptic Experiences Shift Students' Representational Gestures and Knowledge Resources
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